​​Tarion and its Public Interest Mandate

For more than 40 years, Tarion has provided new home warranty protection to more than two million Ontario homes. We serve new home buyers and new home owners by ensuring that one of their life’s biggest investments is protected. Almost every new home in the province is covered by a new home warranty. This warranty protection is provided by Ontario’s builders and lasts up to seven years. It is backstopped by Tarion. More than 365,000 homes are currently enrolled in the warranty program. Every year about 50,000 new homes are enrolled.

Tarion serves Ontario’s public interest by enhancing fairness and building confidence in the new home buying experience.

With more than 230 employees, Tarion works hard every day to serve the public interest by, first and foremost, protecting consumers and their new home purchases. We investigate homeowner warranty claims; resolve warranty disputes between homeowners and builders; provide deposit and delayed closing protection for new home buyers; and prosecute illegal builders. We regulate new home builders and ensure they meet a province-wide standard of technical competence and financial capacity. We also manage the Guarantee Fund, an important financial reserve designed to help shield Ontario consumers from possible catastrophic building events. All of this enhances fairness and confidence in Ontario’s new home building industry.

How We Serve the Public Interest

Tasked with administering the Ontario New Home Warranties Plan Act (ONHWP Act), Tarion has a mandate to:

First and foremost, protect consumers when builders fail to fulfill their warranty obligations;

Educate new home buyers and new home owners about their warranty rights and responsibilities;

Facilitate disputes between homeowners and builders over warranty coverage;

Fairly and impartially make warranty decisions;

Be an effective steward of the Guarantee Fund and build confidence in the sustainability of the warranty program;

Ensure new home builders and vendors abide by the ONHWP Act;

License new home builders and vendors;

Investigate and prosecute illegal building practices; and

Set standards and raise accountability in education, construction performance and customer service.